The present invention is related to a power cord take-up device, and more particularly to a power adapter and the power cord take-up device thereof for receiving a power cord.
An electronic appliance, such as a printer, a radio, a modem (modulator-demodulator) and so forth will be equipped with a power adapter for rectifying and converting the commercially available power into direct current (DC) power, so as to supply the required power to operate these electronic appliances.
A prior art power adapter structure is shown in FIG. 1. As depicted in FIG. 1, the prior art power adapter principally comprises a housing 11, wherein one side 111 of the housing 11 acts as a power receiving terminal. A connector 13 is submerged in the slot 12 on the side 111 for matching with a corresponding connector 161. The connector 161 is provided on one end of a power cable 162, while the other end of the power cable 162 is provided with a plug 163. The power adapter of FIG. 1 receives commercially available power by connecting the plug 163 to a wall outlet (not shown). When a consumer purchases a power adapter, generally a bundling strap 15 will be enclosed in the encasement of the power adapter for the purpose of bundling the power cord 14 when the power adapter is no longer used. When one desires to use the power adapter, the bundling strap 15 has to be unfastened in advance and the power cord 14 can be stretched out to connect with a power receiving device (not shown).
The present invention is related to a power adapter, and more particularly to a power adapter having a power cord take-up device for receiving a power cord.
An electronic appliance, such as a printer, a radio, a modem (modulator-demodulator) and so forth is generally equipped with a power adapter for rectifying and converting the commercially available alternating current (AC) power into direct current (DC) power, so as to supply the required power to operate these electronic appliances.
A power adapter structure of the prior art is shown in FIG. 1. As depicted in FIG. 1, the power adapter of the prior art principally comprises a housing 11, wherein one side 111 of the housing 11 acts as a power receiving terminal. An AC inlet 13 is inset in the slot 12 on the side 111 for matching with a corresponding connector 161. The connector 161 is provided on one end of a power cable 162, while the other end of the power cable 162 is provided with a plug 163. The power adapter of FIG. 1 receives commercially available AC power by connecting the plug 163 to a wall outlet (not shown). Another side 112 of the housing 11 extends a power cord 14 for providing the converted DC power to an electronic appliance (not shown). When a consumer purchases a power adapter, generally a bundling strap 15 will be enclosed in the encasement of the power adapter for the purpose of bundling the power cord 14 when the power adapter is not used. When one desires to use the power adapter, the bundling strap 15 has to be unfastened in advance and the power cord 14 can be stretched out to connect with an electronic appliance.
A first aspect of the present invention is associated with a power cord take-up device, comprising a housing, a power cord with one end thereof connected with the housing, and a take-up reel having a centered projecting member, wherein a top of the centered projecting member is connected with the housing, so as to wind the power cord around the take-up reel to gather the power cord up by the centered projecting member.
In accordance with the power cord take-up device as described hereinbefore, the housing is indicative of a power adapter housing.
In accordance with the power cord take-up device as described hereinbefore, the housing is further divided into an upper housing and a lower housing.
However, the foregoing power cord take-up mechanism for a power adapter causes some cumbersome problems in practical operation:
1. Because the bundling strap 15 is isolated from the power adapter housing 11, the bundling strap 15 is easily lost.
2. After the bundling strap 15 has been bundled with the power cord 14, the power cord 14 will be suspended over the housing 11, such that the power adapter is not easy to be stored and thus occupies a lot of space.
There is a need to provide a power adapter having a power cord take-up device which is easy to be stored and space-saving.
An object of the present invention is to provide a power adapter which is designed for solving the problems encountered by the prior art, and it is characterized by enabling the power cord to be received in the power cord take-up device provided on the power adapter, in such a way that the power adapter can be easily stored.
The power adapter as described hereinbefore is further provided with a projecting flange on the take-up reel.
Now the foregoing and other features and advantages of the present invention will be more clearly understood through the following descriptions with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: